As a victim of sexual assault, I should have known this already, but I only recently discovered that April is Sexual Assault Awareness Month (SAAM), a national campaign that raises public awareness about sexual violence and also educates individuals and communities in how to prevent it. So in honor of SAAM, and to help forward…
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Writing For Young Adults: Something I Learned the Hard Way, Part 2
In part 1, I talked about how writing for a young-adult audience can be challenging, especially given that I graduated high school thirty years ago. This week, I continue that advice with part 2. So without further ado, here’s more of what I learned the hard way when I decided I wanted to write for…
Writing for Young Adults: Something I Learned the Hard Way, Part 1
When I began seriously pursuing writing as a career, I didn’t intend to write for young adults. My book, A WORK OF ART, was originally aimed toward an older audience, but my critique group convinced me (and rightly so) that it was suited for young adults. After all, its protagonist was a teenage girl, and…
It’s All About the Conflict
Writers spend a lot of time on character and plot, which of course are very important, but remember that your story will be boring without CONFLICT. Conflict doesn’t just bring excitement to the pages. Conflict brings characters to life. Think about this. We all make snap decisions about people based on appearance and background information,…
Scene Setting and POV: 2 Lessons I Learned the Hard Way
As a writer, I loathe setting the scene. I’ve literally spent hours going over the same few paragraphs to make sure I “got it right,” only to delete those same paragraphs on my revision. So much time wasted! But at least all that needless writing taught me a few things. Lesson 1: When setting a…
What Doesn’t Kill Us…
I write for teens, so it’s important that I stay in touch with my teenage self. It would help if I had teenage children (my son is 11), but for now I mostly rely on memories of what it was like back in the day. I say “back in the day” as though I have…
Author Visits
“Melody Maysonet’s presentation for our students was terrific. Students loved meeting and interacting with her, and Melody’s background as a teacher certainly showed in not only her prepared presentation but also her Q & A. Her presentation was interesting, relevant, and not to be missed.” –Cathy Castelli High School Teacher, Atlantic Technical High School “Melody Maysonet…
Win a Copy of A WORK OF ART
Did you know that April is Sexual Assault Awareness Month (SAAM)? I didn’t until my sister got involved in Safe Passage, an organization that helps prevent domestic violence and sexual assault in her hometown of DeKalb, IL. I should have known about SAAM, especially because my book A WORK OF ART delves into the shame…
What I Would Tell My Teen Self
As a novelist for young adults, I spend a lot of time trying to recapture the emotions I had in high school. For me, there wasn’t much joy in being a teen. I wrote poetry back then, and a lot of what I wrote captures my self-loathing and fear and confusion. I sometimes wrote about…
The Book I Want If I’m Stranded on a Desert Island
I write edgy fiction for young adults. Real issues. Real problems. So why are my favorite books steeped in fantasy? I’ve always been an avid reader. When I was a kid, I read the same books over and over (Bambi, by Felix Salton; The Chronicles of Narnia, by C.S. Lewis), but these days, I’m a…